Peak 6677 6,677 ft (1989 m) — 1450 ft gain 2023.02.12 The winter snows seem endless, the foothills of the Carson Range releasing the cold moisture from the lake effect that streams out of the Tahoe Basin. The Sierra snowpack is trending toward record depths, and we benefit from the…
Nevada High Points #108 – Goldfield Hills
Cole VABM 6862 ft (2092 m) – 1438 ft gain 2023.01.14 Goldfield Hills Image Collection Sitting at dinner in Beatty, after our nice afternoon in the Bullfrog Hills, Darren and I decided we would explore another small range on our drive home. The Goldfield Hills are a jumble of irregular…
Nevada High Points #107 – Bullfrog Hills
Sawtooth Mountain 6005 ft (1830 m) — 1438 ft gain 2023.01.13 Bullfrog Hills Image Collection I have been turned away twice from Sawtooth Mountain, the high point of the Bullfrog Hills near Beatty, Nevada. Dressed in a crown of radio towers, the Bullfrogs do not seem a formidable obstacle; there…
Nevada High Points #106 – Paymaster Ridge
Joes Peak (Peak 5956′) 5956 feet (1815 meters) — 2300 ft gain 2022.12.09 We missed a month – the move is complete, finally – but are in the Great Basin outback for December. It is another small set of hills as we head to Clayton Valley, a good winter excursion,…
Nevada High Points #105 – Sinkavata Hills
Peak 6399 6399 ft (1950 m) — 1590 ft gain 2022.10.30 Sinkavata Image Collection Sometimes you must go to the desert. We are in the middle of a rather drastic change. Although we may have been leaning, at least occasionally, toward simplifying what and where we call home, we had…
Nevada Highpoints #104 – Bluewing Mountains
Black Mountain 6617 ft (2017 m) – 2205 gain 2022.08.12 Bluewing Photo Collection It’s hot. The sky is clear, and a parched blue horizon rests abruptly on the dusty brown of the Nevada desert. It is August, of course, when desert landscape photography is a challenge. It’s difficult to think…
Nevada High Points #103 — Montana Mountains
Mine VABM 7129 ft (2173 m) — 418 ft gain 2022.07.10 Motivation is hard to find in the long, repetitive days of summer. The Great Basin Desert seems to curl and fold within itself, even as hazy heatwaves dance across the expanse. The high-pressure domes that keep moisture at bay…
Nevada High Points #102 – Pinto Peak
Pinto Peak 6711 feet (2046 meters) — 630 feet gain 2022.05.25 Pinto Peak Collection The ancient Cottonwood Caldera, a massive volcano that erupted sometime around 17 million years ago, dominates the landscape west of High Rock Canyon and the Black Rock Desert. With basin-and-range faulting, several small ranges form the…
Nevada High Points #101 – Slumbering Hills
Unnamed 6531 ft — 1991 m (1593 ft gain) 2022.05.18 Slumbering Images Collection There is something in the Slumbering Hills. The unnamed high point is below 7000 feet in elevation and there are few riparian areas, only scattered springs, and absolutely no trees. Cheat grass and desiccated plants of sagebrush…
Nevada High Points #100 – New Pass Range
New Pass Peak 9002 ft (2744 m) — 2901 ft gain 2022.04.08 New Pass Peak Collection Big, round numbers are cool, and here I am at High Point #100. It is simply a step on the journey, but it is also a great measure of motivation and experience in getting…